Urdu is the national language of Pakistan and is also spoken in parts of India. It is mutually intelligible with Hindi though they differ in their writing systems and in their higher level vocabulary. Given the mutual intelligibility the combined number of speakers of Urdu and Hindi is the fourth largest in the world. As well as being the key that unlocks a knowledge of modern Pakistani culture and society to the student, an understanding of Urdu in the Perso-Arabic script allows the student access to the largest collection of work on Islamic literature after that in Arabic.

A student may not take a course if that course is a prerequisite for another course which they have already passed.

Students with prior knowledge of the language will be required to take a placement test.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the Urdu language major students should be able to:

1. express themselves well in a formal, neutral or informal register, appropriate to the situation and to the people to whom one is speaking.
2. read and understand newspapers and other texts in Urdu
3. engage with authentic Urdu language media
4. write in Urdu in the Perso-Arabic script in the appropriate style using the correct grammar and the vocabulary appropriate the genre, contents and audience
5. Write, perform and record presentations or interviews in Urdu either individually or in cooperative groups, and answer questions based on those performances or interviews

Course Lists

The course lists in the "Requirements" section below is a definitive list and includes all courses that can be counted towards the major, whether or not they are offered in the current year. For a list of courses that will be offered in the current year, please see theSummary of Courses page.

Relevant Degrees

• Bachelor of Art History and Curatorship (BAHCR)
• Bachelor of Arts (BARTS)
• Bachelor of Asia-Pacific Studies (Year in Asia) (BAPYA)
• Bachelor of Asian Studies (BASIA)
• Bachelor of Development Studies (BDEVS)
• Bachelor of European Studies (BEURO)
• Bachelor of International Relations (BIR)
• Bachelor of International Security Studies (BINSS)
• Bachelor of Languages (BLANG)
• Bachelor of Latin American Studies (BLAMS)
• Bachelor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies (BMECA)
• Diploma of Languages (ELANG)